Three-Fold Cord
by mmooch
Summary: When starting college, Buffy finds her love life taking a turn she never, ever expected. WARNING: Non-explicit mention of a B/G/T triad relationship.
1. Chapter 1: Forming the Cord

**Three-Fold Cord**

Summary: When starting college, Buffy finds her love life taking a turn she never, _ever_ expected. WARNING: Non-explicit mention of a triad relationship.

Timeline: an AU season 4. Some things are the same, but others aren't…obviously.

Disclaimer: BtVS characters belong to Joss Whedon / Mutant Enemy. I claim no rights to any copyrighted material. Please do not copy or take this story without my permission.

A/N: Thanks to my betas, NeverTooOld, AshDawnSoulmates, Cristina and zigpal.

Warning: This is my first – and probably last – attempt to write either a femslash or triad. There's nothing explicit about it though. Not even a single kiss. Just the mention of it. Call it my 'Once in a Blue Moon' fic since tonight is a Blue Moon. So if I'm still writing in 3 years, I'll consider writing another fic like this. *wink*

**Chapter 1: Forming the Cord**

**UC-Sunnydale**

Wrapping her arms around herself, Buffy Summers was the very picture of desolation as she made her way back to the campus of UC-Sunnydale. She had gone to her Watcher for help, and he turned her way. He claimed she needed to trust herself and stand on her own, but all she felt was rejected and unworthy. Like this was another punishment for her sins – just as the Cruciamentum was.

She was so deep in her misery that she almost missed the vampires which were surrounding her. The leader, a fashion reject named Sunday, was able to get the best of her…until they heard the screams of her minions turning to ash. In unison, they looked as another was hit with a fireball, and they followed the path back to a timid-looking blonde.

Buffy used Sunday's lack of focus to her own advantage and staked the vamp leader. Once the rest of the minions were taken care of – including the young man Buffy met the night before – the Slayer turned to her new ally. "Hi. I'm Buffy Summers. Thanks for the help," she offered with a smile.

The girl stepped forward and held out her hand to shake Buffy's while she stuttered her name in return, "I'm Tara. Tara Maclay. Glad I could help. I wasn't sure the spell would work," she said shyly.

"Oh, you're a witch? Cool. My best friend is learning about that stuff," Buffy remarked.

Tara was surprised at the other blonde's easy acceptance of what she was just told. "I'm not really all that good," she stammered, blushing furiously. Buffy was much prettier than any girl she had talked to for this long since she came to UC-Sunnydale.

Buffy mistook her blush for a different kind of shyness. "I think those vamps would disagree…if they weren't piles of dust. How did you know they were vampires anyway?" the Slayer inquired.

Tara considered whether she should say anything, but just felt comfortable with the shorter blonde. She trusted her instincts and answered, "I can kind of see people's auras. Theirs were black, so I just guessed."

"Do I want to know what mine looks like?" Buffy asked with a rueful expression. She would hate to think of what the past couple years would have done to her aura – which probably wasn't that great to begin with, given the selfish bitch she was before she was Called.

But the meek Wicca shook her head vehemently in disagreement, "Actually, it's what drew me over here. It's quite a beautiful aura, but it's broken somehow. Like it's missing something," she tried to explain.

Buffy thought she was just being nice. "Not sure how true that is, but thanks anyway. Umm, could I buy you a coffee or something?" she offered, feeling more at peace since she started college. And if this girl had anything to do with that, she didn't want to risk losing it now. Plus it seemed like Tara enjoyed her company as well.

Smiling bashfully, Tara nodded, "Sure. That would be nice."

* * *

**Tara's dorm**

**A couple weeks later…**

Buffy stuck her head in Tara's room to see if her friend was home. Since the Sunday incident, they spent most of their time outside of class together. There was just something so comfortable for both of them in being with the other girl.

Tara was the only one to see that there was the hint of more developing between them, though. Buffy had just never considered dating girls before. But she did have moments when she couldn't help but notice how pretty her new friend was when she smiled.

"Tara? Could you check out my roommate's aura? I've told my friends that she's a demon, but they don't believe me," Buffy announced with a pout as she collapsed on Tara's bed.

The Wicca's eyes snapped up in surprise. "Are you usually wrong about these things? Didn't you say you could sense a lot of demon species?" she inquired nervously. Ever since Buffy admitted to being the Slayer, Tara worried that her new friend would learn her dark secret.

Buffy's blonde tresses flew wildly when she shook her head, "Some, but not all. They just think I'm overreacting to having to share a room for the first time in my life." Her voice betrayed how hurt she was by their dismissal of her intuition.

And Tara caught the pain. She grabbed the Slayer's hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. "I'll be happy to help you out, Buffy. It just seems wrong that they don't at least _consider_ you might be right." She bit her lip before blurting out the question that had been plaguing her for days, "But just out of curiosity, if she _was_ a demon and wasn't hurting anyone, would you still slay her?"

Sitting back up, Buffy thought about that for a moment. "Well, I'd have to be sure of it – meaning I'd have to know what kind she was. If that species was non-violent, I guess I wouldn't have a problem leaving her alone. But I probably still wouldn't want to live with her. Except that's more because she's driving me nuts," she said with an annoyed look.

Then she added, "If it was violent, I'd need proof that _she_ wasn't. After all, most vamps are evil, but Angel usually isn't. It would be wrong for me to assume that the same couldn't be true for other demons. What's the saying? _'The exception to the rule'_? Why do you ask?"

"Just curious. Let's go check out your roommate," Tara stood, hoping that Buffy wouldn't press her.

The Slayer knew there was more to it than that, but decided to let it go for now. Tara had earned her trust so far, and she wouldn't worry about it until she had to.

* * *

**Tara's dorm**

**Three weeks later…**

Tara looked at her possible new girlfriend. She wasn't sure if that would be true when Buffy learned what she was hiding, though. "I was lying before, Buffy," she confessed out of the blue.

Buffy was tempted to tease the other blonde, but heard the genuine fear in her voice. The stuttering helped give it away. "'Bout what, Tara?" she inquired gently.

"The demon question. Whether you would slay your roommate if she wasn't violent," the scared Wicca reminded the Slayer.

"Kinda figured. Wanna tell me?" Buffy asked, sitting up.

Tara snorted quietly, "_Want_ to? No. Think I _should_? Yes."

Knowing that she owed Tara a lot for saving her these past weeks, Buffy tried to calm her down, "Just take a deep breath and relax. What is it?"

"_I'm_ part demon," Tara blurted out, then shut her eyes tightly to avoid the anger in Buffy's eyes at being lied to all this time.

And in doing so, she missed the bewilderment that appeared instead. The Slayer stared at her and tried to sense her…at all. "You are? What kind?" she finally asked, wondering just how many species she couldn't sense.

Tara opened her eyes when she didn't hear hatred in the other girl's voice, "I don't know," she admitted.

Buffy's nose wrinkled in a way that in other circumstances, Tara would have found adorable. "I'm confused. You know you're part demon, but you don't know _which_ species?" she clarified.

"Nuh-uh. All my family ever told me was that I would start exhibiting my demon tendencies when I turned 20," Tara parroted her father's words.

The Slayer tried to recall any demon like that and came up short. "Hmm. Can't say I've ever hear of that before. They didn't happen to tell you what to look for, did they?" Buffy questioned the slightly calmer girl.

Tara shook her head, "No. Just that all the women in our family carried the demon blood."

"All the women, but none of the men? Now I'm even more puzzled." Buffy sighed in resignation, "I hate to say it, but I think we'll need Giles on this."

"Will he make you slay me?" Tara whispered.

Buffy grabbed her new maybe girlfriend's hand and forced her to look her in the eyes. "Hey! He can't _make_ me do anything! And if he wants to make a big stink about this, I'll just remind him who helped me out the last two times when _he_ brushed me off. We won't be doing _anything_ until we know what we're dealing with and that there's _no_ other way to take care of it. Got it?" she demanded forcefully.

Tara nodded, hopeful about her future for the first time in years.

* * *

**Giles' apartment**

After Buffy introduced them, and Tara explained what she knew, Giles attempted to clarify, "So you say that your father warned you about this?"

"Ever since I could remember," Tara confirmed sadly.

His eyes narrowed in masked suspicion. "Did you ever _witness_ the changes in any of the women in your family?" he questioned softly.

Tara thought about that carefully, then shook her head, "Uhh, no."

Buffy recognized the look in her Watcher's eyes, even if they hadn't spent much time together lately. "Do you know what it is?" she asked.

Giles swung his gaze back to his Slayer. Oh, how he missed her, but he didn't want to burden her with his loneliness. "I have my suspicions, but need to run some tests. If you have no objections, Miss Maclay?" he checked.

"No. Go right ahead. I just need to know if I'm going to be a danger to anyone when I turn 20," Tara tearfully pleaded. Buffy moved to embrace her, missing Giles' look of astonishment.

Once the spell was completed a little while later, Giles commented grimly, "Just as I suspected."

Buffy wasn't in the mood to be patient. Her sorta girlfriend was hurting. "What? Don't draw out the suspense here!" she demanded.

The Watcher looked at the young Wicca with a sympathetic expression. "Her family was lying to her. Most likely in an effort to control the females through intimidation. It's a repugnant and cruel tactic, but it's not unheard of in some circles," he told them.

"You're sure?" Tara asked hopefully. This was more than she could wish for.

Giles reassured her, "Your DNA is completely human."

Tara sank back into the couch in relief. "I'm _not_ a demon?" she breathed.

"Nope. And if we ever run into those bastards, I'm gonna crack some skulls together for making you worry like this," Buffy snarled in anger.

"I'll join you," Ripper agreed.

Tara looked at them and saw again what she noticed when they first arrived. "Umm. Now that this is settled, I thought I should tell you two something."

Buffy was startled by Tara's sudden nervous tone. "What's that?"

"Remember when I told you that something was missing from your aura?" the Wicca prompted.

"Vaguely," Buffy answered with a shrug.

But Giles was more surprised at the girl's ability; it was quite rare as a natural talent. "You can read auras?"

She nodded, "Uh-huh. Well, I found the missing piece – or at least part of it," Tara clarified.

Buffy didn't get where Tara was going with this. "What are you talking about?"

"Giles is what was missing. And you're what's missing from his," Tara added.

"What are you saying?" Giles asked, even though he had an idea already. It just seemed too fantastic.

Tara answered plainly, "That you two belong together."

"I thought that we were--" Buffy sounded hurt by what she thought was her girlfriend's rejection.

"And we are!" Tara quickly assured her.

Now Buffy was really confused. "Then how can Giles and I be like that?"

"A three-fold cord," Giles replied.

Tara confirmed, "Exactly!"

"And for those of us who don't have the decoder ring?" Buffy inquired a little harsher than she intended.

Giles started the explanation, "There are some relationships that function differently than the norm of society. They are the basis for the three-fold cord. Separately, they are weak. Mix any two and it's better, but _not_ as strong as it would be with all three."

Buffy stood up and started pacing. "Okay. I'm getting a little wigged here. I've just started to get used to the idea of dating a girl, and now I'm supposed to date _both_ of you? How would the sex part work?" She groaned, then muttered, "And I can't believe I'm having this discussion!"

Tara went to the Slayer's side and took her hand. "Buffy, there wouldn't be any pressure to act on the sexual aspect of our relationship. Either between you and me or between all three of us."

"Of course not, dear girl. This is just a different kind of _friendship_, if you will," Giles added as he joined them.

"Alright, one of you is going to have to explain this to me and why it involves all three of us," Buffy commanded, offering them a weak smile.

Tara took the first round, "Our part is that I center you emotionally so that you can focus, and you encourage me to believe in myself."

"And ours is fairly obvious. Despite our difficulties in the past, we've bonded on a deeper level as Watcher and Slayer," Giles handled the second.

Buffy nodded slowly. "And you two?" she asked, pointing at them.

"That part, I'm stumped on, too," Tara admitted reluctantly.

Giles considered what he knew of the girl and guessed, "Would I be correct in assuming that you are a earth magick user?"

Tara nodded, "Yes."

"Then that's what it is. Your magick is more stable than the type I practiced in my youth. With you, I could start casting again without losing control. And my experiences would help you grow in your abilities," Giles explained.

"Okay. So I get the friendship side of this cord. What about the smoochies side?" Buffy persisted in the part that bugged her most.

Giles gave her an understanding look and said, "It would progress at whatever speed we were all comfortable with."

"The sex isn't the main focus here. That's what you have to remember," Tara reminded her.

Buffy knew she could trust both of them that way, so there were no worries there. "So what now? Do we go on a date?"

Tara smiled shyly at the Watcher and Slayer. "Actually, that sounds like a great idea. Giles and I need to get to know each other, and we _all_ need to get more comfortable with the new relationship."

"Splendid plan. How does a picnic sound?" Giles suggested, masking his own bemusement at this turn of events.

"I don't know. I've never heard one before," Buffy quipped, proving that things would be fine with them.

* * *

A/N: Trying to work out the reactions to this, but having trouble with the dialogue. If I want to post this today, I may have to settle for the way it is now.


	2. Chapter 2: Growing and Reacting

**Chapter 2: Growing and Reacting**

Disclaimer: BtVS characters belong to Joss Whedon / Mutant Enemy. I claim no rights to any copyrighted material. Please do not copy or take this story without my permission.

A/N: Thanks to my betas, NeverTooOld, AshDawnSoulmates, Cristina and zigpal.

Warning: There are some mighty unhappy people coming up.

Timeline: Remember, this is an AU season 4. Oz never left because of Veruca.

* * *

**Buffy & Tara**

It was probably expected that Buffy would want to focus on her and Tara first as a couple. After all, she had already started down that road in her mind and heart. Plus there was the added freakiness of Giles getting…well, freaky with Buffy's mom the year before. Even though she knew it was because of the candy and Ripper didn't really have high standards for his partners, that didn't help her that much. If anything, it made her wonder _again_ about Giles and Ethan way back when.

But Buffy and Tara…Buffy knew that she didn't understand the mechanics of girly lovin' but she figured she knew the basic equipment enough to muddle through. What she didn't know, Tara could help her out on. However, Tara had been serious about taking things slow on the smoochies front.

So they focused on building their emotional relationship without worrying about the physical. Which was easier said than done at times. That's where the hand-holding, cuddling and light make-out sessions came in. Surprisingly, that approach actually helped with the other two parts of the triad.

* * *

**Tara & Giles**

Given the verbal, emotional and sometimes physical abuse Tara suffered growing up at the hands of the men in her family, it wasn't surprising that she had a lot of issues to sort through to even let Giles touch her. At first, she'd only be okay if Buffy were in the room. Tara would keep a close eye on where the Slayer was. Giles knew this and was willing to take his time. Even if there weren't the matter of their triad to think about, this beautiful young woman deserved to be cherished, and she needed to believe that.

As she learned more about his history with Buffy, the more Tara trusted Giles. This man was willing to die for his Slayer – someone he was taught from childhood to view as expendable – after only knowing her for a few brief months. The other stories Buffy shared about his caring and selfless attitude only confirmed what a wonderful man he was. Even the few times he failed her were miniscule compared to the times he saved her, both physically and emotionally. He truly was a man to trust with her heart and body.

* * *

**Giles & Buffy**

Watching Giles care for Tara ultimately helped Buffy accept that while parts of Ripper still existed in Giles, he truly was a different man now. It wasn't like the difference between Angel and Angelus 'cause Ripper wasn't a sadistic monster; it was more like pre-Called Buffy and Slayer Buffy. Who she was back before Merrick changed her life was only a small part of who Buffy was now. It was that realization that helped Buffy open up to Giles.

She found she liked this version of Rupert Giles. He wasn't the stuffy Council drone when they first met, and he definitely wasn't Ripper anymore. He was…Rupert. Somebody she hadn't really met until now. Funny thing was, Rupert was a very funny, playful and – she had to admit it – _very_ sexy man.

* * *

**The Cord**

The three of them together was quite simple to accept once they worked through their issues with the smaller pairings. They thought it would take more effort to ensure that nobody felt pushed aside: Buffy from the magick users, Tara from the Slayer/Watcher dynamic; Giles from the younger girls. The funny thing was though, it flowed naturally.

When Buffy needed extra assurance that she was more than the Slayer, Tara would remind her what a beautiful, charismatic woman she was and Giles would do the same. If Tara felt overwhelmed by memories of her family, Buffy and Giles would help her remember that she had a place with them. When Giles felt old and obsolete, the girls would remind him that he had a lot to teach them in many parts of their lives. And if any of them needed alone time, the others felt it and didn't push – even if that meant that occasionally all three were alone at the same time.

* * *

**The reactions**

**About 4-5 weeks later…**

Eventually it had to happen, though. Their happy little group had to come out of the closet, so to speak. And it just so happened to take place over Thanksgiving.

"Angel! What are you doing here?" Giles asked when he found the vampire on his doorstep.

Looking around furtively, Angel replied, "Doyle had a vision of Buffy in danger. Can I come in?"

Giles fought his anxiety about being with the creature who shared a face with the monster that tortured him. But this was about Buffy, so he brushed his concerns aside. "Fine. Now what was the vision about?" he asked again as he stepped away from the door.

After he entered the apartment, Angel caught a whiff of something that made him take a deeper sniff of the air. "First, why don't you tell me why you're sleeping with my mate _and _another woman?!" the vampire all but shouted. "I can smell them all over you and this apartment! You were just waiting until I left before swooping in on Buffy when she was vulnerable, weren't you? And you couldn't have the decency to treat her like she deserves? If you weren't satisfied with just one woman, _Ripper_, then you should have left Buffy alone!" Angel snarled, starting to stalk towards the Watcher.

Who, despite the shiver of fear he felt, couldn't help retorting, "You're a fine one to talk about treating Buffy like anything. You abandoned her! However, I actually want to thank you for that because your relationship was doomed from the start, and your leaving just helped Buffy realize that."

Anger overruled Angel's actions and he vamped out. "I knew it! You _were_ waiting to prey on her!"

Right at that moment, Tara walked in and saw a vampire in full game face approaching Giles. Without thinking, she used her magick to push him to the other side of the room and held him against the wall. She knew that a vampire couldn't enter without an invitation, so she waited for an explanation before staking the creature who threatened the first man she ever trusted. "Uhh, Giles? Why is there a vampire in your apartment?"

"'Cause that's Angel," Buffy commented, having followed Tara in. "Doesn't explain why he's in Sunnydale though. Care to make with the 'splainy?" she asked with a raised eyebrow at her ex.

Angel just mimicked her tone and shot back, "Care to explain why you're screwing your Watcher? Do you even care that he's screwing someone else?"

Guessing he was trying to stir up trouble with his comments, Buffy gave a small chuckle to throw him off. It didn't matter that he was wrong about the sex part. They were still working their way up to that. They had managed to get to cuddling/smooching on the couch during movies. "Okay, first of all, it isn't any of your business. You left so I could be happy, and I am very happy…with _both_ Giles and Tara. And how do you know anything? Have you been spying on us?"

"I can smell your scents all over him and the apartment," Angel explained, wondering why she wasn't more upset about hearing Giles had another woman. He had completely blocked out her statement about being with two people.

Buffy's nose screwed up. "Eww! That's really disgusting. Did it escape your vampy sniffer that her and Giles' scents are on me, and Giles and mine are on Tara? We are a happy triple couple. Umm, I think the term they used was triad," she said with a look at the others, who nodded.

Rolling his eyes at her naiveté, Angel chided her, "And you fell for that? C'mon, Buffy. Since when are you so gullible?"

She had enough of his condescending attitude. "You know what? I'm sorry that you're hurt, but we're good together, and if you can't accept that, then you should leave. And next time you need to tell us something, use the phone," Buffy told him, not even caring why he was here.

Angel's eyes narrowed in anger. "Fine! Don't come crawling to me when this falls apart and you need help picking up the pieces." Then he simply glared at them and stomped out of the apartment.

That should have been a clue that not everyone would be excited about them. Okay, they kind of already knew that. Which was why they were waiting to share the 'happy' news with the others. They wanted to be sure of themselves before subjecting the relationship to the scrutiny.

The first one they talked to was Buffy's mom.

Joyce was so angry and upset that she refused to stay in Sunnydale for Thanksgiving. Instead, she invited herself to her aunt's house for the holidays. When she left, she declared that this was sick, and Buffy had better get over this phase quickly if she ever wanted a home to come back to in the future.

Whether it was a surprise or not, Xander's reaction was much the same as Angel's. Buffy and Giles decided to announce their part of the triad as a way to ease the others into the news.

Without stopping to think about what he was saying, Xander blurted out, "You're kidding, right? This is some weird English version of a prank? Come up with the most disgusting thing to see if people fall for it?"

Hurt that he would say something like that, Buffy growled, "That's enough, Xander. It's not disgusting, and you are way out of line!"

"Oh please! He's like your father!" Xander snapped back, his opinion clear from the expression on his face.

"But he isn't!" Buffy reminded him. "He's somebody who cares more about me than his own life."

Xander just scoffed, "Yeah, didn't help me when I wanted you back in high school. What's different now? Is it just because Deadboy's gone? Should I have waited until then to make my move?" he asked, missing the hurt on Anya's face when he threw out the question.

Trying to keep her anger under control, Buffy ground out, "It wouldn't matter when you asked; the most I have ever considered you was a friend. If you want that to continue with that much, you'll keep your mouth shut until you can be civil about this."

"I just don't understand why you can't find somebody our age," Xander complained.

Even though things weren't going the greatest so far, Buffy decided that this should be like taking off a Band-Aid. They were already stinging from the pain of Xander's words; it couldn't get much worse…right? "Well, that's actually the other thing we needed to tell you guys. This relationship isn't just me and Giles; Tara is the final piece to our puzzle. The three of us complete each other," she explained, holding hands with both her partners.

Any hormone-driven fantasies of Buffy with another woman were overridden by the addition of Giles to the mix. "That's just sick! Do you even _understand_ the concept of normal, Buffy?" Xander yelled at her.

Buffy saw the pain flash in both Giles and Tara's eyes and her control broke. "That's it! I won't have you hurting either of the people I love. Giles is one of the best people we have ever known – which you _personally_ know! And Tara is the kindest soul I have ever had the privilege of meeting! She doesn't deserve any of your jealous hatred. Of the three of us, _I'm_ the one who isn't normal! I'm a mystically chosen warrior for crying out loud! _They_ are the ones who can do better!"

Squeezing her girlfriend's hand, Tara reassured Buffy, "No, we can't. _You_ are who is best for us."

Giles caressed Buffy's cheek as well while looking into her eyes. "Tara's correct, luv. Xander is the one who is wrong here. We have accepted his relationship with an ex-demon and Willow's relationship with a werewolf. By his standards, those aren't normal relationships either, but Anya and Oz are more than just an ex-demon and werewolf; they are our friends. Real friends would remember that before casting stones."

But like the broody brunette before him, Xander stormed out of Giles' apartment, not even realizing that Anya didn't follow him. Despite the fact he gave her good orgasms, she didn't like this side of her bedmate. If he couldn't accept this triad, did he really accept her past? Or did he just overlook it for the sake of sex? When she thought about it, the sex wasn't enough for her.

Of the Scooby Gang, Anya probably took it the best. "This just isn't a sex thing for you three?" They shook their heads warily. "Good! I saw a lot of triads when I was a vengeance demon, and the _true_ ones – the ones that weren't just about threesomes – were the most content people I had ever come across. No woman in one of those triads was ever scorned. Still, I hope that you have many wonderful orgasms together," she declared.

"Umm, thanks Anya." Buffy replied bashfully. It didn't look like either Giles or Tara were going to be saying anything anytime soon.

Once she stopped gaping like a fish out of water, Willow immediately starting her hypersonic babble, which none of them could understand. When she would take her gulping breaths, they tried to figure out her expressions, but then the chattering began again.

Oz didn't know Tara, but figured that it was only a matter of time before the Watcher and Slayer got together. After all, they shared a destiny, why not a romance? "So, the three of you…that's different. You're all good with it?" They nodded. "Cool."

Giles looked fondly at the young werewolf. "Thank you, Oz. That means a lot that at least two of you accept this. Maybe when Willow stops babbling we'll find out her take on it."

"I'm sure she'll be okay with it. There's just a lot for her to process right now," Oz said with an amused expression. Poor girl had to deal with Buffy with a girl, with Giles, and with the idea of all three of them. But he had no doubt that her love for her friends would win out in the end.

So when Thanksgiving happened the next day, it wasn't quite so festive for the small group. On the plus side, the ghost spirits were the highlight of the day. Gave them something else to focus on for a few hours.

* * *

A/N: That is it, folks. This is just a mini challenge that NeverTooOld and I came up with for fun. To write about a three-way relationship that wasn't a PWP.


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